13 Blogs All Novelists Should Follow

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In no particular order, here are 13 blogs all novelists should add to their RSS feed.  Whether you need updates on the world of publishing, info on writing a query letter, explanations of the ongoing Google settlement, you’ll find all that info in the following pages.  Some are agents, some are editors, and all are useful.
  1. Edittorrent
    • Great blog for improving your writing skills, be it grammar or style.  This blog (written by two editors) is less about the writing-industry and more about the writing-toolbox.
  2. Miss Snark’s First Victim
    • Not an agent, but one of the most useful sites for budding authors.  Authoress (who runs this blog) hosts a  monthly Secret Agent Contest that just can’t be beat.
  3. Editorial Anonymous
    • This anonymous editor offers insight and advice in response to reader questions.  Very helpful — especially if you’ve got specific questions of your own to ask.
  4. Book View Cafe
    • Various authors contribute to this blog with all sorts of educational and inspirational tutelage.  If you haven’t yet discovered Book View Cafe, be sure to take a look (and don’t miss the blog while you’re there).
  5. Nathan Bransford
    • This very popular agent’s blog provides its readers with info on publishing, agents, writing skills, and all the steps-that-lead-t0-publication.  Invaluable resource.
  6. Query Shark
    • If you enjoy brutality and blood-in-the-water, then you’ll love Janet Reid’s Query Shark.  She periodically analyzes a query letter for all its mistakes, and then she posts What Went Wrong for the rest of the world to learn from.
  7. Daphne Unfeasible (kt literary)
    • With a clear passion for shoes, this agent offers regular insight into the publishing world.  Best of all, she regularly critiques query letters (more gently than the Shark) for all her readers to learn from.
  8. Janet Reid
    • The face behind the Query Shark.  She’s a harsh and to-the-point agent, but you can learn a lot from her daily posts.
  9. Jessica Faust (Bookends, LLC)
    • Another agent’s blog with lots of info on publishing, querying, writing, and anything.  You ask the questions, and she gives the answers.  Very helpful!
  10. The Rejectionist
    • Just hilarious.  Useful, too, but also side-splitting hilarious.  Don’t miss this agent-assistant’s blog — it’ll always make you laugh.
  11. Rachelle Gardner (Rants and Ramblings)
    • This agent offers insightful, motivating, and educational daily posts for its readers.  She mostly discusses publishing and getting an agent, but she often touches on “how to make your words sing”, as well.
  12. Kristin Nelson (Pub Rants)
    • Helpful, straightforward site.  This agent gives you the low-down on queries, agents, first pages, and publishers.
  13. Jennifer Jackson (Et in arcaedia, ego.)
    • This agent’s blog will put your rejection into perspective.  She offers a regular post called “Letters from the Query Wars” that says 1) how many queries she read, 2) how many she requested, and 3) the major mistakes she noticed in queries that week.  This is a must for the querying writer.

Well, I hope I’ve offered you some new resources to improve your writing journey.  Best of luck and happy writing!

-S.